Study Guide for Prospective Maine Wildlife Rehabilitators Drawing by Josephine Ewing Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife 284 State Street 41 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333-0041 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Maine's Wildlife Rehabilitation Study Guide© and Examination Booklet© represent revisions and adaptations of the New York State Wildlife Rehabilitation Study Guide and the New York State Wildlife Rehabilitation Examination Booklet (1991), which were prepared by Mark A.Pokras, DVM and Diane Thomas, DVM (Wildlife Clinic, Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, No. Grafton, MA 01536). Other important contributors to the original New York materials included the Board of Directors of the New York State Wildlife Rehabilitation Council. We thank the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for permission to use their materials as the bases for the present documents. Modifications of the New York materials were proposed and begun in 2001 by members of ReMaine Wild, Maine’s state organization for wildlife rehabilitators and associated professionals. That work continued in 2002 and 2003, under the auspices of the newly-formed Wildlife Rehabilitation Working Group, which was comprised of representatives of both Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife and the Maine rehabilitation community. Diane Winn was the coordinator and editor of the project; other rehabilitators who provided input were Donna Bogardus, Carleen Cote, Lynne Flaccus, Susan Giglia, Karen McElmurry, Jim Parker, Marc Payne, Ann Rivers, Kappy Sprenger, and Paula Williamson. Input from Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife was provided by Phil Dugas, Henry Hilton, Lisa Kane, Keel Kemper, John Kenney, George Matula, Amy Meehan, Dave Phillips, Sandy Ritchie, Charlie Todd, and Lindsay Tudor. The materials were reviewed again in 2004, prior to adopting them into a new procedure for permitting wildlife rehabilitators in Maine. The printing of these documents was made possible by a grant to ReMaine Wild from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund. We thank the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council and the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association for permission to include, with our materials, their jointly-issued Minimum Standards for Wildlife Rehabilitation (3rd Edition, 2000, E. Miller, Editor). © 2004 Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. All rights reserved. No part of these publications may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanically, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior express written permission of Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Because of the significant content from the New York State Wildlife Rehabilitation Study Guide and Examination Booklet (1991), permission to reproduce these materials must also be obtained from the New York Department of Conservation, Division of Fish and Wildlife. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Topic Page INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOKLETS . 4 Using the Booklets . 4 Preparing for the Examination . 5 INTRODUCTION TO WILDLIFE REHABILITATION . 5 Wildlife Rehabilitation in Maine . 5 State vs. Federal Rehabilitation Permits . 6 Wildlife Rehabilitators . 6 The Rehabilitator's Role . 7 Do You Want to be a Rehabilitator? . 10 Cultivating a Relationship with your Veterinarian . 12 Continuing Education and Wildlife Rehabilitation . 13 ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO REHABILITATORS . 13 Identification of Species . 13 Individuals and Populations . 14 Common and Rare Species . 14 Rabies Vector Species. 15 What's Best for the Animal . 15 Releasability . 15 What if the Animal Can't be Released . 16 HUSBANDRY . 17 Housing . 17 Disinfection . 18 Nutrition . 18 Stress . 20 SPRING "ORPHANS" . 20 Care of Young Birds . 22 Care of Young Mammals . 23 Taming, Habituating, and Imprinting . 24 REPTILES . 25 TRIAGE AND FIRST AID . 26 ZOONOTIC AND EPIZOOTIC DISEASE . 27 Rabies . 27 Visceral Larval Migrans . 27 West Nile Virus . 28 GLOSSARY . 29 APPENDICES . 33 4 INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY GUIDE, MINIMUM STANDARDS, AND EXAM BOOKLET You have received these documents because you have expressed an interest in acquiring a permit to rehabilitate wild animals in the State of Maine. The factual and philosophical information in these documents will help you understand the nature of rehabilitation, and thereby help you decide whether or not you really wish to become involved in this activity. It is important to remember that the information in these booklets is just the barest introduction to wildlife rehabilitation. Understanding the basic concepts will help you acquire your permit, but you will need to learn more -- by reading more detailed materials, going to conferences, and networking with other rehabilitators. Good rehabilitators continue developing their skills, no matter what their level of expertise. State, national and international rehabilitation organizations (see Appendix One) publish newsletters and journals, and also sponsor conferences; joining one of these organizations is one way for rehabilitators to stay current. Using the Booklets The Study Guide will serve as your primary introduction to the field of wildlife rehabilitation. Although it contains a great deal of information about the nature of wildlife rehabilitation, it is actually a highly abbreviated introduction to the field. Not all of the questions in the Exam Booklet are taken directly from material in the Study Guide, which is intended to serve only as a starting point. You certainly should read the Study Guide carefully and think about some of the difficult biological and philosophical issues discussed there. You should also familiarize yourself with the information in the Minimum Standards for Wildlife Rehabilitation, jointly issued by the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC) and the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (NWRA); you have obtained this document along with the Study Guide and Exam Booklet. In addition, however, you should purchase field guides and some of the basic references listed in Appendix Two to add depth and breadth to your understanding of what wildlife rehabilitation involves. Keep in mind, though, that written materials represent just one learning tool. It is equally important that prospective rehabilitators spend some time working with, and learning from, people who already hold permits to rehabilitate wildlife. The examination to receive a permit for wildlife rehabilitation in Maine consists of 100 written questions that have been chosen randomly from the nearly 500 questions presented in the Exam Booklet. You must achieve a score of eighty percent (80%) or higher to pass this examination. To facilitate your studying, questions are arranged in logical categories and each question is shown with the correct answer. In many cases, there is also a brief explanation of why the indicated answer is considered correct. This format will help you understand the reasoning followed by Maine rehabilitators and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (ME IF&W). By reading the questions in the Exam Booklet and studying the answers, you can learn a great deal of specific information about the biology of wild animals and the nature of wildlife rehabilitation. But you should not attempt to simply memorize the Exam Booklet. Rather, you should use it as a guide to understanding the subject matter. Always make sure you can explain why one answer is better than the alternatives. Achieving that understanding may require you to consult materials other than the Study Guide and Minimum Standards booklets, or to ask a rehabilitator for an explanation. 5 Preparing for the Maine Wildlife Rehabilitation Examination The examination contains a great deal of specialized information, so it is unlikely that you will do well on it without quite a bit of preparation in advance. As noted in the section above, you should carefully review the Study Guide, the Minimum Standards, and the Exam Booklet. It will help if you purchase the Principles of Wildlife Rehabilitation (2nd Edition), published by the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (NWRA), and perhaps one or more of the other basic rehabilitation manuals that are available. You should also purchase field guides for identification of native animals, and look up species found in Maine so that you can begin to learn more about our native wildlife. Remember that many of the questions in the Exam Booklet reflect information you may have to locate in sources other than the Study Guide and Minimum Standards booklets. As you read these materials, you will discover quickly that some real-world problems may have more than one solution. However, we have tried to make examination questions as clear and unambiguous as possible, and each exam question has only one correct answer There is no better way to familiarize yourself with the realities of rehabilitation than by spending time with practicing, permitted rehabilitators. The rehabilitation permit office of ME IF&W will assist you in finding rehabilitators in your area. Ask questions about the rehabilitators' facilities, look at the kinds of reference books they have, find out how they located veterinarians and to whom they turn when questions arise. We strongly recommend you volunteer at an existing rehabilitation facility. This hands-on experience will help you decide if you want to dedicate the time and effort required to be a good rehabilitator. If possible, attend a state or national conference for rehabilitators. Become a member of a state rehabilitation organization,